Monthly Archives: February 2009

John Zabawa is the proprietor of one of the coolest stores in all of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Among the tourist traps, trinket shops, and souvenir stands, John’s store stands out as a MUST SEE for any wargamers, diorama enthusiasts, miniaturists, or Civil War toy soldier buffs. With plans to expand in the future, his store will get even better and better as the years progress!

Gettysburg Group Reservations recently vacated a part of the building adjacent to John’s toy soldier shop, offering potential for possible future expansion for Gettysburg Miniature Soldiers, which is located on the popular Steinwehr Avenue strip, at the intersection with Taneytown Road. This site in 1863 figured in the Battle of Gettysburg.

Let’s take a virtual tour of Gettysburg Miniature Soldiers – a mini-paradise for gamers and figure collectors!!!

I am now filling orders for personalized autographed copies of the newly released Flames Beyond Gettysburg: The Gordon Expedition, June 1863. These are $23.95 plus $5 shipping, and tell the story of the Confederate invasion of southern Pennsylvania in the week immediately before the Battle of Gettysburg.

You will much better understanding Day 1 at Gettysburg after you read this book!!! It sets up how and why the Confederate troops were in the locations in which they began the Battle of Gettysburg.

Scott L. Mingus, Sr. at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY in the summer of 2007. My favorite baseball player of all time has got to be Johnny Bench. My Dad and I spent hours on his back patio listening to the Reds on Radio (Al Michaels (later Marty Brenneman) and Joe Nuxhall).

Here, my son Tom photographed me standing in front of JB’ s #5 road jersey. I am wearing a T-Shirt from Larry Reber‘s Gettysburg Miniature Soldiers, an Internet-based retailer of exceptional Civil War miniature wargaming figures (mostly 15mm ACW and other 18th and 19th century periods). Larry is an expert in custom conversions of 15mm figures.
Now, how can you get your own classy and stylish Gettysburg Soldiers T-Shirt? Buy one from Larry, or possibly win one for free by entering the Johnny Reb Gaming Society’s Spring Fling Photo Contest!!! Send me your photos of your own custom converted 15mm, 25mm, or 54mm Civil War wargaming or diorama figures for publication on this blog, along with a description of what you converted the figure from (and what you made it into), your techniques, etc. I will choose one entry at random for a 2XL dark blue T-Shirt courtesy of JRGS and Larry!

My latest book, Gettysburg Glimpses: True Stories from the Battlefield, is now available for sale from Xlibris Publishing. Printed on demand using the latest digital print technology, orders for this new book are generally printed, filled, and shipped within 2 weeks or so after receipt of the order. Excerpts from the book may be read on-line on the publisher’s bookstore.

This book offers more than 200 fresh stories from the Battle of Gettysburg and the Gettysburg Campaign, many of which have not appeared in print since the late 19th century. These anecdotes, incidents, and stories range from the humorous to the ironic and unusual, but all are of interest.

Signed first edition copies of Gettysburg Glimpses may be ordered directly from the author at scottmingus@yahoo.com. Send an e-mail for details.

Master Gettysburg dioramist Dennis Morris has set up a new website with photos of some of his very nice HO scale dioramas of the Second Day of the Battle of Gettysburg. Filled with vignettes, battlefield descriptions, and troop movements, his website is sure to be of interest, especially as he expands it and adds more photos and text.

Dennis is a New York-based hobbyist who has been slowly expanding his Gettysburg diorama since its modest beginning in 2005. Some of his excellent photos grace my Brothers Divided wargaming scenario book, which is now on sale from Marek/Janci Design.

Author John F. Schmutz has penned a new book on the Battle of the Crater, an ill-fated attack during the Siege of Petersburg. Conceived by a Pennsylvania colonel named Henry Pleasants using a tunnel dug by the coal miners of the 48th Pennsylvania, the subsequent attack was nungled almost from the start and accomplished little except provide employee for the gravediggers. I discussed this attack briefly during my talk at Fall-In 2008 on the Petersburg Campaign. Here are some comments from the author on this new publication:

Civil War National Heritage Area and the Tennessee State Museum will present a conference entitled Civil War in the Heartland: The Cavalry, A Conference on Mounted Warfare at Belle Meade Plantation on Friday and Saturday, March 27 & 28, 2009.

Civil War in the Heartland: The Cavalry, A Conference on Mounted Warfare will examine the importance of cavalry and mounted warfare actions that occurred in Tennessee during the tumultuous period of the Civil War. Through lectures, walking tours, and discussion, the conference will focus on the varied aspects of the war, evaluate the cavalry leadership of both the Union and the Confederacy, and examine the powerful ways in which horse mounted soldiers shaped the outcome of the war. The conference will bring together various viewpoints on mounted warfare and its impact on Tennessee and the role of Belle Meade Plantation as the post-war home of Confederate cavalry General William Hicks Jackson.

To celebrate the upcoming publication of my first hardback book, The Louisiana Tigers in the Gettysburg Campaign: June-July 1863, (available from LSU Press in September 2009) I constructed a small mini-diorama of the predecessor organization, Wheat’s Tigers, in action in Virginia. The 15mm figures are by my friend Larry Reber of Gettysburg Miniature Soldiers, whose talents are regularly featured in the hard copy version of Charge! The trees are made by my cheap model tree method, with a Heki model pine tree from a box of them I bought from Doug Kline of Battlefield Terrain Concepts. Foliage and flocking are from Woodland Scenics. The five-rail fencing is from Musket Miniatures.

I have added two books from Osprey Publishing to my ever growing collection of books concerning the American Civil War. They are quite different from each other in style, content, and format, but both offer interesting perspectives on elements of the Civil War / War Between the States / Rebellion / War of Northern Aggression / War for Southern Rights / The Late Unpleasantness (did I cover all my political correctness bases???).

The oldest professional guide service in America proudly announces its annual autumn seminar. This year we will be presenting the stories of several hard fighting but often-neglected Gettysburg brigades. The weekend includes special in-depth walking tours with experienced battlefield guides, Friday night reception, two breakfasts and two lunches, Saturday night banquet, maps and materials, and more.